element14 exclusive European partner for Motorola’s Moto Mods dev kit

September 15, 2016 //
By Julien Happich

Available to buy exclusively from Farnell element14, the maker and developer focused Moto Mods Development Kit (MDK) has been launched following an agreement between Motorola and its new global distribution and manufacturing partner, element14.

Designed to connect to the new Motorola Moto Z smartphone, the MDK enables makers to transform the capabilities of their smartphone by creating their own, custom applications called Moto Mods .

Owners of any Moto Z smartphone can buy the MDK to transform their smartphone into an entirely new device unlike any other smartphone on the market. The Moto Mods magnetically snap onto the back of the phone, seamlessly become one with the handset and temporarily change the phone into any number of other devices, including a speaker, or even a projector. Motorola along with element14 are the only manufacturers offering this level of customization. This high level of customization and development using Moto Mods is possible thanks to the Moto Mod Smart Surface, which provides a direct electrical connection to the phone, giving developers access to the phone’s power and data paths. Custom hardware can be created and then directly controlled via the handset. The two companies anticipate that designers will want to commercialize their own Moto Mods.

Included in the Moto Mods development kit is a perforated board to solder components to, an example cover and a Reference Moto Mod. All of the components of the kit will also be available for purchase separately from element14.

The distributor is also offering the Motorola HAT Adapter board to extend the Reference Moto Mod for use with existing Raspberry Pi HATs, and Motorola’s Personality Cards ( Audio, Battery, Display and Sensor), with open-sourced electrical and mechanical schematics, Moto Mods firmware, and Android Apps that serve as examples of how users can create their own prototypes.